Equipment

Company Spotlight: Don’t Cell Cobra Short

Published

14 years ago

Oct 19, 2012

In the last year, the golf industry has seen Cobra-Puma push the limits of how much color golfers will tolerate in their games. Its 2013 line of drivers, fairway woods and hybrids will be available in silver, as well as colors called Directoire Blue, Barbados Red and Vibrant Orange; names that sounds more Crayola than Cobra. Right now color is cool, and Cobra’s new lineup makes it the coolest.

But Cobra has always been a cool company, even before Puma purchased it in March 2010. Cobra was previously a part of Acushnet, where it sat beneath Titleist in prominence. But it caught the attention of both serious and casual golfers with its dedication to performance, especially in drivers.

The company will turn 40 this year, making it one of the longest-running OEMs in golf. Acushnet purchased Cobra in 1996, a time when the company was enjoying success from endorser Greg Norman and its Baffler hybrid. But the spotlight stayed fixed on Titleist at Acushnet, which stifled Cobra’s development. Under Puma, however, Cobra is back on the main stage. And despite its youthful vibe, the company has grown up.

Cobra’s 2012 product releases were some of the most polarizing of the year. Riding the buzz of Rickie Fowler’s affinity for orange, Cobra added orange to its drivers, fairway woods, irons and wedges. Consumers were hard-pressed to find a product in the 2012 lineup that was not available in orange. But there’s such a thing as too much of a good thing, which is why Cobra has broadened its color palate.

Cobra’s AMP Cell iron in different color options

But Cobra isn’t just hoping to become the most noticeable golf equipment company. Cobra-Puma President Bob Philion said he wants Cobra to become the most desirable company in golf. To do that, the company is focused on creating golf equipment that makes the game as easy and as fun as possible.

An example of that focus is Cobra’s AMP Cell driver, which gives golfers the ability to adjust loft from 8.5 degrees to 11.5 degrees without changing any other variables. Philion recognized the importance of adjusting loft in an internal test of Cobra employees that showed that 62 percent were playing drivers with the wrong loft.

The solution was highly technical – Cobra engineers wanted to create a driver that allowed a wide range of loft adjustability. But the problem with changing loft on most adjustable drivers is that when loft is changed the look of the club is changed at address as well. This is because changing loft on most drivers means changing what part of the driver’s sole rests on the ground.

When loft is added to most adjustable drivers, the face tilts up. This places more of the rear portion of the sole on the ground and has a tendency to close the face. When loft is reduced on most adjustable drivers, the face tilts down. This puts more of the front portion of the sole on the ground and has a tendency to open the face. But Cobra engineers figured out a way to solve the problem with a “Smart Pad,” a 1.5 cm strip located on the bottom of the AMP Cell drivers, fairway woods and hybrids that limits the amount of sole that rests on the ground at address. This keeps the face angle of the AMP Cell drivers, fairway woods and hybrids remarkably square regardless of loft setting.

According to Tom Preece, vice president of R&D at Cobra-Puma, the AMP Cell’s adjustability, coupled with the Smart Pad, creates an elegant, low-cost solution to long-game fitting (the AMP Cell will retail for $299). More importantly, the adjustability eliminates the need to make drivers, fairway woods and hybrids in different lofts. Because of that, Cobra can make its long-game clubs in different colors without increasing the amount of SKUs that retailers have to carry. Click here for more discussion in the “Tour/Pre-release equipment” forum.

“Celling” out

Many golfers who were loyal to the Cobra brand were concerned for the company’s future when Puma acquired it. The familiar black-and-yellow color scheme took a backseat to orange, which gave some Cobra loyalists the impression that the company was more interested in paint than performance. But what they didn’t know was that while Cobra changed its look, it kept its independent R&D team from Acushnet.

According to Philion, one of the perks of being a part of Puma is Cobra’s ability to tap Puma’s trend research. That connection helped Cobra decide on the four different color options for the AMP Cell lineup. It sparked innovation as well.

The face of an AMP Cell driver

Puma has employed “Cell” technology in footwear and clothing for years, using cell-shaped structures to make its products lighter, more stable and more comfortable. Cobra engineers piggybacked on the concept, carving out cells in their new drivers, fairway woods, hybrids and irons that helped them redistribute weight in the most desirable areas.

Cobra engineers did this by finding out which parts of the clubs were put under the least stress at impact. They were able to move weight from the areas under the least stress to places where it could boost performance, making certain parts of the titanium-constructed AMP Cell drivers as thin as 0.7 mm. Many golfers assumed that the colored dots that surround the sweet spot of the AMP Cell drivers, fairway woods and hybrids were cosmetic details, but they are actually the easiest-to-see example of Cobra engineers moving weight on a granular level in the new line.

“To save a few grams doesn’t sound like a lot,” Preece said. “But it’s huge.”

Casting a wide net

One of the biggest issues facing Cobra as it moves forward is an uncertainty about what segment of the market it should be targeting. Is its future creating products for golfers who dress like Rickie Fowler or those who play like him? While Cobra has roots in super game-improvement clubs such as the Baffler, the company is also releasing an AMP Cell Pro driver and AMP Cell Pro Forged irons in 2013, PGA Tour-inspired designs that will meet the demands of the best golfers in the world.

It’s easy to say that the bright colors of Cobra’s 2013 lineup mean that it’s aimed at younger golfers. But as anyone who’s ever been to a recent PGA Tour event can attest, it’s not just young golfers who are wearing bright, bold Puma clothing: it’s 30-year-old, 40-year-old and even 50-year-old golfers.

Maybe that’s the point. It doesn’t matter how old you are or how serious you are about the golf — you can still enjoy the game. Cobra is helping golfers have more fun on the course by giving them color options. And offering nearly one-size-fits-all equipment takes a great deal of risk out of the purchase, making buying new gear more attractive. The 2013 lineup of equipment has also proven that Cobra’s R&D team is committed to making the game easier as well, which means there is only one question left for Cobra-Puma.

How do I keep my white belt clean?

Click here for more discussion in the “Tour/Pre-release equipment” forum.

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2 Comments

Fred

Oct 27, 2012 at 1:45 pm

Color – don’t forget the 70 years young

Reply Report comment
Jason

Oct 19, 2012 at 9:53 pm

Great piece! I play mizuno irons but will NEVER go away from Cobra drivers… The instant I can get that Amp Pro I will be ordering!

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Equipment

Then and now: Comparing Rory McIlroy’s current setup to his record-breaking 2019 Canadian Open victory

Published

2 hours ago

Jun 11, 2026

Alistair Cameron

In Rory McIlroy’s first appearance at the 2019 RBC Canadian Open, he crushed the record books to earn his 16th PGA Tour title in dominating fashion, winning by seven shots over Shane Lowry and Webb Simpson.

McIlroy’s score of 22-under-par 258 is the lowest 72-hole score to date at the Canadian Open, and his closing 61 is also the best final-round score in the history of one of golf’s oldest tournaments. Finally, with his win in 2019, McIlroy became only the sixth player to win the career Triple Crown, adding to his victories at the U.S. Open in 2011 and The Open Championship in 2014, joining Tommy Armour, Walter Hagen, Arnold Palmer, Lee Trevino and Tiger Woods in a coveted list.

So, with that, why not compare his current setup to the clubs he used to break all the records?

Driver

2019: TaylorMade M5 (9 degrees), Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei CK Pro White 70 TX
2026: TaylorMade Qi4D (9 degrees @8), Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 7X (45 5/8 inches)

McIroy led the Tour in Strokes Gained: Off-the-Tee in 2019; he’s doing the same in 2026. Between now and then, McIlroy has switched from the Mitsubishi Tensei CK Pro White 70 TX (a shaft with slightly more feeling in the tip) to the original Fujikura Ventus Black 7X, having just made the change to the heavier version from playing the 60X.

What’s interesting about McIlroy’s 2019 setup is that the weighting on his driver is actually set in the high-draw setting, using the T-Track weighting system, whereas in the Qi4D, he’s currently using a heavily rear-weighted setup. (Two 13-gram weights in the rear and only two 4-gram front weights.)

The TaylorMade M5 driver he played in during his Canadian Open win was the company’s first head that they claimed to design to initially exceed the USGA’s COR limit, and then injected with tuning resin to bring it back in bounds.

Fairway woods

2019: TaylorMade M6 3-wood (15 degrees), Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei CK Pro White 80 TX; TaylorMade M5 5-wood (19 degrees), Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei CK Pro White 90 TX
2026: TaylorMade Qi4D 3-wood (15 degrees), Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 8X; TaylorMade Qi4D 5-wood (18 degrees), Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 9X

The TaylorMade M6 fairway wood that McIlroy was using during the 2019 season is still in the bag of some of the best golfers on Tour in 2026. Just check out Justin Rose’s winning setup from the Farmers Insurance Open earlier this year. This year, though, McIlroy has still been searching for his top-end-of-the-bag setup, having played both the new Qi4D and the Qi10, which he won the Masters with.

The same shaft swap can be seen in the fairway woods as the driver, along with slightly less loft on the 5-wood.

Irons

2019: TaylorMade P750 (4) Buy here, TaylorMade P730 (5-9), Shafts: Project X 7.0
2026: TaylorMade P760 (4), TaylorMade Rors Proto (5-9), Shafts: Project X 7.0

The biggest difference between McIlroy’s custom set and the stock P730s is the groove design. While the P730s were constructed with 14 MX-9 grooves on their milled faces, McIlroy’s proto heads instead use the higher-spinning, 16-groove layout of the TW2 grooves. Other big differences between the sets are that McIlroy’s 7- and 8-irons have thinner toplines, are 1 degree stronger in loft, and are 1/4 inch longer than the original P730 builds.

With McIlroy’s 4-iron, the switch from P750 to P760 sees a transition to a two-piece construction with Speed Foam in it, which allows McIlroy to launch the ball slightly higher, with more workability.

Wedges

2019: TaylorMade Milled Grind (48-09SB), TaylorMade MG Hi-Toe (52-09SB, 56-09SB, 60-LB09), Shafts: Project X Rifle 6.5
2026: TaylorMade MG5 (46-09SB, 50-09SB, 54-11SB, 60-08LB @61), Shafts: Project X 6.5 (46-54), Project X 6.5 Wedge (60)

Between 2019 and 2026, McIlroy’s focus on his short game has been much more apparent. It was the reason why he switched back to the TP5 golf ball, to help with launch, spin and control with his wedges leading up to his career Grand Slam victory in 2025. The most apparent changes to McIlroy’s wedge setup are his lofts and bounce. He’s slowly delofted his pitching to a sand wedge, but has increased the loft on the lob wedge, bending his current 60-degree to 61. With that, adding more loft to his lob wedge also slightly increases the bounce and leading-edge sit point, so, as a result, he plays a lower-bounce lob wedge compared to 2019. The MG5 wedges are also softer than the first Milled Grind option from 2019. McIlroy also no longer plays the full-face grooves found on the Hi-Toe.

Putter

2019: TaylorMade Spider X
2026: TaylorMade Spider Tour X

Notice anything similar. Yes, the copper finish on Rory McIlroy’s Spider X putter in 2019 is a slightly more reflective finish than the recently released torched PVD finish. McIlroy was using the True Path alignment system, but now uses only a single white sightline.

Ball

2019: 2019 TaylorMade TP5 (#22)
2026: 2025 TaylorMade TP5 (RORS)

As mentioned above, McIlroy had transitioned from the TP5 to TP5x golf ball since his victory in Canada in 2019, but now is black with the same style of golf ball as his victory at Hamilton Golf & Country Club.

Grips

2019: Golf Pride Tour Velvet Cord
2026: Golf Pride MCC

Interesting, McIlroy actually used Golf Pride’s Tour Velvet Cord grips during his victory in 2019 (it was during a 2+ year switch to the corded TV) as opposed to his usual MCC grips, which he has played for most of his career.

Equipment

From the GolfWRX Classifieds: Titleist Vokey Proto Wedges 54M, 60T

Published

4 hours ago

Jun 11, 2026

Will Schube

At GolfWRX, we are a community of like-minded individuals who all experience and express our enjoyment of the game in many ways.

It’s that sense of community that drives day-to-day interactions in the forums on topics that range from best driver to what marker you use to mark your ball. It even allows us to share another thing we all love – buying and selling equipment.

Currently, in our GolfWRX buy/sell/trade (BST) forum, @Putt4Dough is selling some prototype wedges from Vokey Wedgeworks. These include a 54 degree wedge with the M grind and a 60 degree wedge with a T grind.

From the listing:

(1) Titleist Vokey Proto Wedge 54M with a Tour Issue DGS400 shaft and Golf Pride Tour Velvet (logo down). Standard length, lie, and loft. BB&F ferrule. Raw wedge in good condition. No initials. Price is $200 shipped. Buy both wedges for $380 shipped.

(2) Titleist Vokey Proto Wedge 60T with a KBS Tour 130X shaft and Golf Pride Tour Velvet. Standard length, lie, and loft. Raw wedge in good condition. No initials. Price is $200 shipped. Buy both wedges for $380 shipped.

To check out the full listing in our BST forum, head through the link. If you are curious about the rules to participate in the BST Forum, you can learn more here: GolfWRX BST Rules.